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Teens charged after girl's beating caught on video

A vicious attack that saw a 15-year-old girl slammed on the ground into unconsciousness may be the end result of students from neighbouring high schools feuding over social media posts.

The gruesome incident, captured on a video that went viral, unfolded around 4:20 p.m. Tuesday on Wexford Dr., a residential street near Kennedy Rd. and Bovaird Dr.

But students from the schools involved, Notre Dame Catholic Secondary and Heart Lake Secondary, say the violence followed a dispute from earlier that afternoon.

“I heard more than 70 kids from Notre Dame showed up at Heart Lake before this happened,” Tasin Khan, a Grade 9 Notre Dame student, said Wednesday. “They were arguing over there, then decided to leave and go back to Notre Dame.”

Some students said the crowd dispersed after police were called.

A short while later, the victim was attacked in front of Khan’s house. But neither she, nor anyone in her family, saw the brutal incident.

“I heard (the Notre Dame students) were walking back and some Heart Lake people were following them,” the 14-year-old said. “I guess because they wanted to continue the argument.”

In the 20-second video, posted on Twitter, a boy suddenly lunges at the slight victim, wraps one arm around her waist and the other behind her back. He scoops her up into the air and slams her down hard, causing her to smash her head the sidewalk at the foot of Khan’s driveway.

The girl’s body goes limp and one of the spectators continues recording with a cell phone, at one point zooming in on the victim’s face. The perpetrator casually strolls off.

Police say the girl regained consciousness on the way to hospital and is expected to make full recovery.

Joshua Gordon, 18, and a 16-year-old boy, who can not be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, have since been charged with assault causing bodily harm.

“It’s shocking,” Khan’s father, Shahnur, 46, said of the attack that occurred in front of his home.

His sentiments were echoed by students from both schools.

“It’s terrible,” Lloyd McDowell, a Grade 9 Heart Lake student, said of the attack on his schoolmate.

As of Wednesday afternoon, he hadn’t been able to reach his “friend” but was told by peers the girl was at home recovering from a concussion.

The victim, who can’t be named because one of the accused is under 18, told CP24 she watched the video but doesn’t recall much of the attack.

“I just remember waking up in the ambulance,” the Grade 10 Heart Lake student said, adding she feels “kind of angry.”

“Why would he do that? He’s crazy for (doing) that,” she said. “There was no point in being so aggressive with me.”

The victim said she had never met her attacker prior to Tuesday.

“There was an argument going on between me and another guy,” she said. “And I guess he just stepped in and decided to take matters into his own hands.”

Several students said the dispute was originally sparked by something posted on Twitter.

Peel Regional Police Const. Lillian Fitzpatrick said the video is “very disturbing” and urged anyone who finds such footage online to report it to police.

“If you find something questionable, even if your not sure, contact us,” she said. “We will investigate it.”